Contractor accused of lying to obtain MacDill housing

When security personnel at the MacDill Air Force Base's Dale Mabry Highway gate detained Scott Allan Bennett in April, it appeared to be a simple case of a service member suspected of driving under the influence.

But that stop led to an investigation that ended with Bennett accused of something far more serious - breaching security at the home of U.S. Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command and the 6th Air Mobility Wing.

Bennett, 39, was accused of obtaining base housing under false pretenses by pretending to be an aide to Special Ops head Adm. Eric Olson and storing a large amount of weapons and ammunition in the housing he was not supposed to have, according to federal court papers filed last month by Edward Garcia, a supervisory detective with the Air Force police at MacDill.

Bennett was charged with making a false statement on a matter within the jurisdiction of the executive branch of government and violating a defense property security agreement. He was also charged with driving under the influence by Tampa police and released on $500 bail for that charge.

Bennett was arrested Wednesday in Washington, D.C., according to Amy Filjones, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office. He was released on bail, but Filjones did not immediately have details. There will be a hearing in U.S. District Court at 9:30 a.m. Jan. 14.

A phone call to Bennett was not immediately returned. His attorney, David Floyd Chalela, said "we are confident that it is completely an overblown case. I am sure he will be exonerated."

Chalela said there was nothing to prevent Bennett from living on the base and, even if there was, the onus was on the housing contractor to have prevented him from obtaining base housing.

"They made a mistake," Chalela said. "To turn this into a federal case for a bureaucratic snafu is just ridiculous and a colossal waste of taxpayer dollars. They claim he wasn't entitled to live on base, but their own bureaucrats approved it."

Representatives of AMC East Communities, which operates base housing at MacDill, declined comment.

Bennett is a second lieutenant in the Army without any prior issues, Chalela said.

"He was hoping to be deployed overseas, but this has put a wrinkle into those plans," Chalela said.

As an avid gun collector and Army officer, it is not unusual for Bennett to have weapons, Chalela said. "He has a constitutional right to bear arms," Chalela said.

Bennett was doing intelligence work related to the Middle East for Booz Allen at the time he was at MacDill, Chalela said. Booz Allen is a private contractor that provides technical and analytical services.

Bennett, who moved to Tampa to take the job with Booz Allen, was fired by that company shortly after the incident at the MacDill gate, Chalela said.

James Fisher, a spokesman for Booz Allen, said in statement today that "Mr. Bennett no longer works for our firm and the incident was not in any way related to his employment with us."

MacDill officials, in a statement released today, said the base "stands ready to assist local authorities."

Bennett was stopped at the base gate in the early morning April 23, according to the affidavit. An inspection of his car found two knives and an empty gun holster. Bennett denied having more weapons when asked by a guard.

The affidavit and a Tampa Police Department report contains the following account of Garcia's investigation into Bennett and what police found in Bennett's car.

Bennett appeared confused during the encounter, and Tampa police were called in. Police found a concealed weapon on Bennett and upon inspection of the car found a loaded handgun, three more knives, a box of throwing stars, a large machete, a collapsible baton, a sling shot with BBs and mace.

Bennett also had a stun gun and had concealed weapons permits from Utah and Virginia

After being released by police, Bennett returned to the gate, where he was arrested and read his rights. Bennett refused a request by Air Force police to inspect his base housing, and Garcia obtained a search warrant through a military court.

Once inside Bennett's housing, investigators found seven loaded firearms, 9,389 rounds of ammunition, numerous knives, an electric stun gun and a collapsible baton in addition to other weapons and unnamed prohibited material.

Under military law, Bennett was supposed to report any weapons and ammunition. According to the affidavit, he failed to do so.

As the investigation continued, Garcia stated that he found Bennett obtained his housing by subterfuge.

To obtain base housing, one must be at least in the reserves, on active duty and stationed within 25 miles of the base.

Bennett was a member of the U.S. Army Reserves at the time, but he was not on active duty and had only been on active duty once, for a week.

Bennett was a civilian military contractor at MacDill working for Booz Allen for at least some of the time he was living on the base.

In January 2010, Bennett first contacted AMC East Communities. Company officials told him the housing was only for active duty. Later, he showed up in his Army uniform and said he just got off a plane with Olson, who Bennett claimed was the commander of Central Command.

Bennett claimed to be Olson's aide and that Olson directed him to get base housing "as quickly as possible."

After hearing Bennett's story, the housing official showed him an apartment but said he would have to see Bennett's orders. Bennett said he didn't have them, because he just got off the plane.

On Jan. 19, Bennett filed out his forms and said he was "reporting for duty at MacDill Air Force Base from a dependent/restricted remote tour."

Bennett stated he was in the Army on active duty, his incoming unit assignment was Centcom and he was transferred from the 11th Psychological Operations Battalion - which was created during the Vietnam War and disbanded in 1971.

On the basis of Bennett's assertions, he was approved for base housing.

On Jan. 29th, he moved in.

Five days later, an employee e-mailed him a request to see his orders.

Bennett replied that they were top secret and he would need "Centcom approval" to provide those orders.

Neither Bennett nor the employee followed up, and about two months later, Bennett was arrested for drunk driving and investigators found his weapons.

"In April 2010, Scott Allan Bennett, a MacDill Air Force Base contractor, was apprehended by base security forces during a random base entry vehicle check," MacDill officials said in the base's statement. "The security forces members followed established procedures and discovered legal weapons in his vehicle, but the weapons were not properly registered with the 6th Security Forces Squadron. Upon further investigation, Mr. Bennett, a military reservist, falsely presented himself on active duty status to gain residence on the installation. Once his status was verified, his eligibility for base housing was revoked. MacDill stands ready to assist local authorities."

Bennett's attorney, Chalela, said he expected a hearing in Bennett's case next week.

Bennett "is now up in the Washington, D.C., area trying to get his life together and figure out what to do next," Chalela said.